Once the social contract is broken–not stretched or shrank–but broken, people seek the barricades and pick sides for their own protection. Such was the fate of medieval Europe when the collapse of society allowed both robber barons and Florence to flourish, but left the populace fearful, weak, and exploited.
It’s not the “age” of a society, but the respect for its own traditions of success–in government and the market–that nurtures a new generation and creates a compelling vision that drives growth, jobs, and innovation. Without this, there is broad fail.
The broad systemic failure has been hoisted on the President (as unsupported sarcasm or blame!), yet his first term was a mirror of our failure to face the destructive reflections within ourselves, or address the root causes. Obama has worked continuously and responsibly to bring a return to the American Promise and hold the center. Yet before the echo of his words faded, pundits accused him of partisanship.
Age, yes; but an age of greed. So blind and hungry for power that Jindal in Louisiana brags about saving millions as he cuts hospice care for families and forces people into higher price ICUs, splintering both government and the market as he crushes the life out of civil society. On voting, women’s healthcare, and public trust, states are failing to uphold the American Promise of a secure society, one with dignity for rich and poor. Their answer to the President’s call are petitions to secede.